The bad blood between Italy and France. At the heart of the dispute: the fate of some 25,000 illegal immigrants arrived in Italy since January, mainly from Tunisia and Libya. Thursday, Rome decided to grant temporary residence permits for humanitarian protection for migrants, allowing them to travel within the Schengen area. Paris, meanwhile, reacted strongly, saying that it did "not suffer a wave of immigration."
After an exchange of pleasantries between Paris and Rome, accusing each other of adopting a "hostile behavior", the interior ministers of Italy and French, Roberto Maroni and Claude Gueant, met Friday in Milan.The showdown seems inevitable: France has already said she would return to Italy all migrants who could not submit the required documents to enter its territory, and those who could not prove sufficient resources whose amount was set at 62 euros per day per person - reduced amount to 31 euros if they have accommodation.
"The duty of solidarity is part of the European policy on immigration, said the antenna FRANCE 24 Catherine de Wenden, a specialist in international migration CNRS.And now? Italy was left alone to face the newcomers. "
Influx of immigrants from North Africa
"To travel within the Schengen area, it is not enough to have a residence permit in one of the Member States, must still have identity documents and, more importantly, justify resources," said Thursday French Minister of the Interior, before recalling that under the rules of the European Union, "the first country visited is the responsibility of foreigners who come home." Italy, in this case. Its southernmost island, Lampedusa is being the closest European land of Tunisia and Libya, the Mediterranean Sea.Since the beginning of the revolutions in the Arab world last January, this island of 20 square kilometers land sees every day hundreds of North Africans.
These days, cohabitation between 5000 and 6000 inhabitants immigrants currently on the island has become "unbearable" in the words of the spokesman of the High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Italy, Laura Boldrini. Illegal immigrants survive in poor sanitary conditions and infrastructure in place urgently by the Italian authorities have quickly proved inadequate. Faced with this situation, the head of Italy Silvio Berlusconi has promised to quickly evacuate the migrants to several shelters in southern Italy.But out of the question for the country, to assume that one wave of immigration.
An Italian decision against French targets
Especially as the words of the Italian Minister of Interior, "the overwhelming majority of respondents want to go in European countries, especially France. That's what worries Claude Gueant, who has never made any secret of his intentions regarding immigration, which he has made a priority for 2011. This year he has set a target to deport 28,000 illegal immigrants (25 500 were renewed in the first eleven months of 2011)."Quite frankly, I hope we do more," he said in an interview published Friday in Le Figaro Magazine.
To this end, he strongly defends the Besson Act in Parliament - it should take effect in coming months - which seeks to extend the term of administrative detention from 32 to 45 days."This will give more time for the administration to have the consular pass, essential for renewed [the border]," he says, pointing to work with the Justice Minister, Michel Mercier, to "mobilize more systematically the prosecution "to file an appeal if the judge decides liberties and detention of release.
This week, the Interior Minister is passed to the next level by revealing during his interview with Le Figaro Magazine, will also reduce legal immigration. "I asked that we reduce the number of persons admitted under the immigration work (20 000 arrivals per year).And we will continue to reduce the number of foreigners coming to France under the family reunion (15 000), "he said. The refuge is also in the sights of the Minister:" Our country is more generous than the Germany or the UK then we apply the same international conventions, "he was justified.
This initiative is not unanimity within the government. During an interview on France 3 on Thursday night, the Economy Minister, Christine Lagarde, has openly criticized the project."In the long term, it will require labor, you will need employees trained workforce," she said, before adding: "I do not know what are the reasons why [Claude Guéant] to say this sentence but [...] regarding immigration that is legal, of course it must be protected and secure. "
